WILL TRANSPO WINNING STREAK CONTINUE IN ATLANTA? On Tuesday, 12 special districts in Georgia have a chance to vote for applying a 1 percent sales tax to finance transportation improvements. It’s an innovative referendum that allows each district to opt in or opt out, but most watchers’ focus is on Atlanta, which would get about $6.1 billion over the next 10 years to go with federal bucks to deliver $7 billion in transit, road and other infrastructure improvements. “This region has never attempted to do what we're doing. Ten counties have never banded together to vote on one thing in the history of Georgia,” Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed told MT, adding that his polling shows a “statistical dead heat.”

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Left to locals: Atlanta-area Reps. Rob Woodall and Hank Johnson told MT the region has terrible transportation problems and predicted the largest primary turnout ever. “Here in Georgia, we’re saying you either get the benefits and you pay, or you don’t get the benefits,” Woodall said. Meanwhile, Sen. Saxby Chambliss said he has personally voted for the measure but the decision is up to Georgians. If the vote fails? Adie Tomer of Brookings tells us it might be back in the next few years, stronger than ever: “There’s a bit of an education campaign for the general populous of what their money is going to buy,” he said, after which “people seem to change their positions.” Burgess has your guide to this week’s big story: http://politico.pro/LWdoM1

Want to see all the projects the vote would deliver in metro Atlanta? Here’s a handy-dandy interactive map: http://bit.ly/LWdG5B

‘We can’t wait’ for Tuesday’s vote: The White House announced Friday that a multimodal passenger terminal in downtown Atlanta has been added to the list of expedited infrastructure projects. The new transportation hub will include accommodations for high-speed and commuter rail, MARTA, Greyhound and cyclists. A White House official told us there’s no connection between the Friday announcement and the Tuesday vote. “This is a national effort focused on expediting economically important infrastructure projects around the country (not local government policy issues).” The official said to expect more such expediting announcements “in the next few weeks.”

COMMERCE SETS HUERTA VOTE: After weeks of MT pestering Senate Commerce leaders, a confirmation hearing cut short by a vote-a-rama and concerns that his nomination would be tanked on the floor, acting FAA head Michael Huerta will be up for a committee vote Tuesday. If Commerce members sign off, his nomination would move to the floor — where some have speculated it could be held up by Republicans looking to retake the White House. The FAA chief serves a five-year term independent of the president. But the weekend’s festivities in London give us the perfect occasion to remind you that Huerta and GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney both worked on the Salt Lake City Olympics. Huerta has served as acting FAA administrator since the December 2011 resignation of Randy Babbitt following a drunk driving charge that was later withdrawn.

But wait, there’s more: Commerce also votes on John Thune’s bill — which he discusses frequently with Commerce witnesses — to prohibit the EU’s aviation emissions program (S. 1956) and the nomination of William Doyle to be a Federal Maritime Commission member.

IN THE HOUSE THIS WEEK: The House schedule shows a Wednesday vote on Rep. Michael Grimm’s bill (H.R. 897; text: http://1.usa.gov/M2ECAA) to preserve toll discount programs for local residents after a court struck down lower fares for those living near the New York Thruway. The House vote is under suspension of the rules — no amendments, two-thirds needed for passage and limited debate time. Sen. Chuck Schumer has a companion bill in the Senate that’s been referred to the Commerce Committee. Also on deck: the Marine Debris Act Amendments of 2012, (H.R. 1117; text: http://1.usa.gov/Pf2qBQ), which authorizes and amends the Marine Debris Research, Prevention and Reduction Act.

“Half my life spent on a highway … I have seen the north star shining in the freight yard …” http://bit.ly/IU79cN

TIFIA SCRAMBLE: The TIFIA program doesn’t escape the Oct. 1 waiting game that MT has written about ( http://politico.pro/LLSM9h), but DOT didn’t waste any time in rolling out the new funds. A mere three weeks after the bill became law, Secretary Ray LaHood on Friday announced the agency is open to letters of interest, though not all of the program criteria have been finalized. The $1.75 billion over two years, through leveraging, could lead to $50 billion in transportation spending, DOT said. LaHood was obviously proud of how quickly DOT moved on the issue: “I don’t know of another agency that had a bill signed and within a very short period of time is initiating a multibillion dollar opportunity for America,” he said. A notice of funding availability and request for comments ( http://1.usa.gov/PRrvaG) includes much more. Adam has the breakdown for Pros: http://politico.pro/PRtRpP

FINED: DOT hit both Travelocity and World Atlantic Airlines with $180,000 fines on Friday. Travelocity’s was for not including fuel surcharges and other fees in the ticket price, a violation of price advertising rules ( http://1.usa.gov/PRsMhZ). The WAA fine is over inadequate consumer protections in the wake of the March shutdown of charter service Direct Air ( http://1.usa.gov/PRtfR1).

TRANSIT PIER PRESSURE: DOT's IG issued the FTA a series of recommendations to improve the agency's oversight of the Dulles Metro extension to Tysons Corner, Va., according to an IG report. The investigation was sparked by a 2009 probe that found safety concerns with support piers for the aerial rail alignment. The IG advises FTA to require MWAA, which is responsible for the project's construction, to commit to more comprehensive corrosion and erosion testing of pier components as well as force MWAA to respond to scheduling concerns surrounding the delivery of new railcars and expansion of the West Falls Church Station's rail yard for Silver Line service. The IG also asks MWAA to put $200 million in the project's capital reserve fund to “resolve potential funding risks.” Read the report: http://bit.ly/NMoUwv

SENTINEL ENDORSES MICA: Central Florida’s biggest daily, The Orlando Sentinel, gives T&I Chairman John Mica the nod over Rep. Sandy Adams in their Aug. 14 primary match. Why? “Mica gets things done. Adams has little to show from her first term, and her hyper-partisan approach makes it unlikely she'll ever get much of anything done in a divided Washington.” http://bit.ly/M1QnY5

PORT REPORT: MT is back with text of a Federal Maritime Commission report that finds Canadian ports are snagging business from U.S. ports ( http://politico.pro/POr7tm). The competitive disadvantage stems partly from America's Harbor Maintenance Tax, the report said, as well as insufficient port infrastructure.

MAILBAG — LOST: Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue sent a letter Friday to all 100 senators asking them to take another look at the benefits that the Law of the Sea Treaty would deliver, including an expansion of sovereignty over natural resources, especially rare minerals. Noting China controls 90 percent of the world’s supply for such minerals, Donohue wrote that “no U.S. company will make the multi-billion-dollar investments required to recover these resources without the legal certainty the convention provides.” Enough senators have come out in opposition to sink the treaty. Read the letter: http://bit.ly/MpRTor

MT READERS HAVE SPOKEN: And it was almost a split decision. In the end, 45 percent say there’s no way Congress approves an Amtrak bill next year before the Oct. 1 deadline. But 40 percent say it’ll happen in late 2013, after an extension or two. Only 14 percent say it happens on time, before Oct. 1, 2013.

NEW MT POLL — Referendum referendum: With the big Georgia transportation sales tax vote this week, MT wonders if you would support a generic regional 1 percent sales tax in your home metro area if it paid for transportation improvements. Ballot boxes close Sunday at noon. Vote and see results: http://poll.fm/3tpsk

AIR TAXI TAX: Alaska lawmakers are rolling out a legislative push intended to clarify how the IRS applies excise tax regimes to Alaskan air taxi outfits; Sen. Mark Begich is first out of the gate with a bill (text: http://bit.ly/OizvSs), though Sen. Lisa Murkowski is expected to sign on today. Rep. Don Young is also readying a companion bill in the House. Small air taxi outfits have complained bitterly that IRS agents have been moving the goalposts on long-standing taxing practices, reinterpreting the rules retroactively and hitting them with an unexpected tax bill. Read a white paper on the issue from the Alaska Air Carriers Association: http://bit.ly/OizsGf

THE COUNTDOWN: DOT funding runs out in 62 days, passenger rail policy in 428 days, surface transportation policy in 793 days and FAA policy in 1,158 days. There are 99 days before the general election and the 113th Congress convenes in 160 days.

GET $&!^ DONE: Reuters breaks down California Gov. Jerry Brown’s term and finds that he is more interested in getting big projects done than in getting reelected — he was, after all, governor more than 30 years ago too. “Biting off too much? There's an election every two years and sometimes we get special elections! … If the fear of electoral outcomes is going to be a basis of paralysis, we are never going to get anything done,” he said in unveiling a huge water project last week, which leads us to the money quote. Brown working the state budget, passing the high-speed rail bill in the legislature and carving out huge water tunnels leads a researcher to observe: “The national equivalent would be Barack Obama talking about balancing the federal budget and at the same time unveiling a mission to Mars.” http://reut.rs/MbHZLM

CABOOSE — The city smells bad enough: In South Korea, an aroma dispenser was added in buses to blast off a “coffee-like” fragrance whenever a Dunkin’ Donuts radio jingle plays. The Atlantic finds a conclusion that should make all of us fearful: “Over the course of the campaign, more than 350,000 people ‘experienced’ the ad … sales at Dunkin' establishments located near bus stops increased 29 percent.” http://bit.ly/MbI7e4

** A message from the Coalition for Future Mobility: Driving Safety: Human error. It’s a factor in 94% of all crashes according to government data. So imagine how much safer our roads would be with Autonomous Vehicles. By reducing risky and dangerous driving behaviors, AVs will help save lives. Tell Congress to greenlight Autonomous Vehicle testing and deployment.http://bit.ly/gl-sd **

About The Author

John Burgess Everett is a congressional reporter for POLITICO. He previously was a transportation reporter for POLITICO Pro, Web producer, helping run POLITICO’s Twitter and Facebook accounts, and a contributor to the On Media blog.

About The Author

Adam Snider is a transportation reporter for POLITICO Pro and author of Morning Transportation. He has covered transportation since 2007, joining POLITICO in 2011 to launch MT and later found the word “Mica-ism.”

Snider is a fan of all modes of transportation, though nothing beats a good silly walk. In his spare time, he can be found brewing a hoppy beer, rooting for the Nationals, watching a bad 1970s horror movie or exploring the District from his home base in Mount Pleasant.

Adam studied English and communications at Clemson University in South Carolina. His work has been featured by Nieman Journalism Lab and his snark has appeared on MSNBC. He has had several works of fiction published in literary journals and is constantly reminded of his proclamation to a fiction professor many years ago that journalism is for sellouts who abandon their creative dreams.